J. Taylor W.
- Title: Water Resources Engineer
- Alma Mater: North Carolina State University, Bachelor of Science – BS, Biological Engineering
- Hobbies: My primary hobby is golf; however, it’s more of a passion. I play every opportunity I have and enjoy everything about it. Other hobbies I enjoy are snowboarding in the Colorado mountains, which I do once a year, spending time with family and friends, and following all the Raleigh, NC, local sports teams. I am a Carolina Hurricanes fan and an NC State fan.
I chose to pursue a career as a Water Resources Engineer because…
The thing I love most about my job is…
The people I work with every day. My team, our clients, and everyone in the industry working towards a similar goal is what drives me to do quality work that will help make a difference throughout local communities. I really enjoy the collaboration required within the Transportation team to provide the best engineering design for the variety of projects we do.
I’m excited to be a part of the TranSystems culture because of…
The “All-In” dedication and commitment to care about each other and provide excellent solutions to clients. Personal relationships are so important to me in my daily life and being able to have that “family” feel while working with the TranSystems team is very exciting. The culture fits who I am personally, and professionally, which makes it a seamless transition in my daily life.
The thing that excites me about the future of TranSystems is…
The endless opportunities of working with an expanded network of professionals, clients, and communities throughout different regions in the US to gain different perspectives and valuable knowledge on how to grow as an engineer within this industry.
8:30 – 9:30 AM – Log on and check emails
Typically, my workday begins around 8:30 a.m. I always start each day with emails. I will check and return whatever necessary emails I have at the beginning of each day before getting into design work which requires more focus.
9:30 – 11:00 AM – Begin working on current design projects
Recurring items on my to-do list are generally project-related design tasks. One of the more enjoyable things about consultant engineering design is that I have a large variety of projects that differ in many ways; therefore, most of the projects are different. The programs I use daily are MicroStation (more specifically, GeoPak Drainage) and the HEC-RAS modeling software. Both are instrumental in daily project work, whether I am designing storm drainage for a roadway project or hydraulically modeling a bridge crossing for a flood study.
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM – Meet with project teams
I attend project-related meetings regularly during the duration of a project. These include kickoff and project scoping meetings, project coordination meetings, and final design/field inspection meetings with the client.
12:00 – 1:00 PM – Lunch break
I stop for lunch each day to take a break from my computer screen time, but my lunch break varies from day to day. It just depends on the day and how many tasks I need to finish prior to close of business.
1:00 – 2:00 PM – Team check-ins
I check in with the North Carolina Water Resources team daily. Water Resources team meetings are regularly scheduled on a weekly basis, but overall NC Transportation team meetings are generally scheduled every quarter. The NC Transportation Roadway team is another department I work with on a regular basis. Most of our hydraulic projects have a roadway component, whether that is a bridge replacement, roadway widening, intersection improvement, etc.; therefore, I work closely with the Roadway team throughout project life cycles.
2:00 – 3:00 PM – Work closely with mentors
Most of my mentors are co-workers of mine that I work with on a regular basis. I have been a part of Legacy SEPI for my six-year working career; therefore, I have learned from many people that I still currently work with daily. A professional mentor that moved on from Legacy SEPI prior to the TranSystems acquisition, was the director of NC Transportation and I communicate with him on a regular basis.
3:00 – 5:30 PM – Continue working on project tasks
Pipe Sewer: Morgan Creek Aerial Sewer Crossing Flood Study, Chapel Hill, NC
Bridge project: Bridge 28 Replacement over Cedar Gut, Pamlico County, NC
Sidewalk: SE Judd Parkway Sidewalk, Fuquay Varina, NC
5:30 PM – End the day
I usually stop working around 5:30. During the summer, I plan for some outdoor time after work, either doing yard work, going for a walk, or working on my golf game. During the early sunset portion of winter, I will typically just eat supper, and then get ready to watch a live sporting event on TV, whether that be NHL, NFL, or college basketball.
Looking ahead
I am looking forward to kicking off many of our new, larger South Carolina roadway and drainage design projects. I enjoy working with urban stormwater roadway projects and some of these newer contract wins will provide more opportunities to learn about a new client while also completing a variety of design projects.
What’s next?
Well, I became a registered North Carolina Professional Engineer (PE) in the summer of 2022. This has been a steppingstone in my career and for the last couple of years, I have been working towards signing and sealing many different engineering projects in North Carolina. I became a registered Florida PE at the end of 2022, and my goal for 2023 is to become a registered South Carolina PE so that I can sign and seal engineering design work in this region.
Right now, I am not officially part of any industry associations; however, that is a goal of mine for this upcoming year. In the last few years, I have attended many professional organization conferences and events, and plan to become more involved with the NC Flood Plain Managers (NCFPM) organization.
